IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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It    I4S    12.0 


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Photogi'dprjc 

Sciences 

Corporation 


33  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


^^ 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  canadien  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


0 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


D 


□ 


Couverture  endommag^e 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurie  et/ou  pellicul6e 

Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  g^ographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Rali6  avec  d'autres  documents 


D 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serrde  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intirieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajoutdes 
lors  dune  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  At4  filmdes. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppi^mentaires; 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6td  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-dtre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mithode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiquds  ci-dessous. 


I      I    Coloured  pages/ 


D 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommag^es 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaurdes  et/ou  pellicul6es 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxei 
Pages  d6color6es,  tachet^es  ou  piqu6es 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  ddtach^es 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Quality  in^gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  materit 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplimentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 


I      I  Pages  damaged/ 

r~~l  Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

I      I  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I      I  Pages  detached/ 

r~n  Showthrough/ 

I      I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I      I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 

I      I  Only  edition  available/ 


Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  6t6  filmies  d  nouveau  de  fagon  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 
Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  reduction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 
10X  14X  18X 


^ 


12X 


16X 


20X 


26X 


30X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


e 

§tails 
s  du 
lodifier 
r  une 
Image 


rrata 
to 


pelure. 


H 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Library  Division 

Provincial  Archives  of  British  Columbia 

The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  — ♦>  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


1 

2 

3 

L'exemplaire  film*  fut  reproduit  grAce  ik  la 
gAnArositA  de: 

Library  Division 

Provincial  Archives  of  British  Columbia 

Les  images  suivantes  ont  it*  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
de  la  nettet*  de  l'exemplaire  film*,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimAe  sont  filmAs  en  commengant 
par  le  premier  piat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  film^s  en  commengant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ^  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN  " 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  *tre 
filmds  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  cliche,  il  est  U\m6  d  partir 
de  I'angle  sup^riaur  gauche,  de  gauche  &  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n^cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m^thode. 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

fR  U    '^O 


i  ITlli 


[ii  I?'  W^'^ 


..,J 


imu 


mm 


r 


1*1 


I? I  in" 

"  '■'■■■i5ll34 


ill 


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Mm 


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im 


H:ai:ffe|.(|., 


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EARLY    MIGRATIONS. 


ARCTIC   DRIFT 


ANJ> 


Ocean  Current 

COAST  OF  GREENLAND 


Of  Relics  from  the  American   Arctic  Steamer 

"Jeannette," 


By 


CHARLES  WOLOOTT  BROOKS 


SAN    trR*t»CfSCO,    CAXtF^mA 

tJeo.  Spmidlns  *  Co..  Printw.!! 


EARLY    MIGRATIONS. 


AECTIC  DEIFT 


AND 


Ocean  Currents 


ILLUSTRATED  BY  THE  DISCOVERY  ON  AN  ICE-FLOE  OFF  THE 


COAST  OF  GREENLAND 


Of  Relics   from  the  American   Arctic  Steamer 

"Jeannette." 


DV 

CHARLES  WOLCOTT  BROOKS 

Member  of  the  Academy. 


Rfad  before  the  California  Academy  of  Sfieiices  September  1st,  1S84. 


SAN    FRANCISCO,    CALIFORNIA: 

Geo.  SpttuKUnK  &  Co.,  Printers. 

1884. 


Arctic  Drift  and  Ocean  Currents. 

ii,iA:sTitATi;n  nv  the  dihcoveky  on  an  ice-floe  (jff  the 

COAST   OF   GREEXLAND 

Of  Relics  from  the  Amerlccin  Arctic  Steamer 

"Jearinette." 


SflEXTIFIC    IMI'ORTAXCK   OF    THE    SUBJECT. 

It  is  ii  now  uiul  ini[)ort!iiit  fact,  wovtliy  of  ciireful 
record  by  pliysicists  of  all  nations,  that  icc-fioes  from 
]iortli  of  Herald  Island,  opjtosite  Bering  Strait,  dividing 
Asia  from  America,  are  drifted  to  tlu;  south-western  i)oint  of 
Greenland  in  the  Atlantic.  Tin;  deep  and  constant  in- 
terest manifested  by  this  Acaileniy  in  the  American  Arc- 
tic explorations  of  the  Jtioniettc,  Avhich  sailed  from  our 
port  on  July  (Stli,  187'.),  under  command  of  Lieut.  Georgo 
W.  De  Long,  U.  S.  N.,  and  in  the  fate  of  her  gallant  crew, 
is  well  known  to  all  scientific  bodies   throughout  the  world. 

Humboldt,  the  father  of  modern  science,  that  great  and 
good  man,  when  off  the  coast  of  Peru,  first  discovered  the 
stream  that  bears  his  name.  Both  Humboldt  and  Sir  John 
Hersehel  pronounced  ocean  circulation  the  greatest  i)roblem 
of  terrestrial  physics.  Ocean  currents,  with  inland  water 
courses,  have  largely  dded  and  often  directed  early  migra- 
tions. Isothermal  lines  are  not  strictly  coincident  with 
parallels  of  latitude.  Along  the  Atlantic  seaboard  of  North 
America,  a  warm  stream  Hows  four  miles  an  hour,  which 
Di.  Croll  telLs  us,  conveys  as  much  heat  to  northern  Europe, 
as  the  entire  Arctic  regions  obtain  from  the  sun.  Dr.  Wm. 
B.  Carpenter  recently  informed  the  British  Association  that 
oceanic  currents  flow  northward  into  the  Arctic,  because  cold 
water  there  sinks,  and  constantly  stimulates  the  water  from 
warmer  regions  to  advance  and  till  its  place. 


bG74i8 


ARCTIC    DRIIT    AND    OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


Dr.  Wm.  H.  Dill,  U.  S.  C.  S.,  attrihntos  tlioir  presouco 
to  the  iuHow  of  warm  frosli  wator,  (lisoliargud  by  tlio  largo 
number  of  rivers  tlowiii},'  northward,  ami  emptying  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  polar  basin.  Atmosplierio  pre.s.sui-e,  revealed 
by  recent  barometric  tests,  affords  data  for  another  plausible 
theory. 

Dr.  A.  Goiko  has  brought  out  discoveries  in  geology  which 
merit  consideration  in  the  study  of  this  subject.  Earth  is  an 
oblate  spheroid  Hattened  26  ,",,^0  miles  at  the  polos;  but  re- 
cent geodetic  measurements  show  it  to  be  an  unsymmetrical 
form,  whose  ecpiatorial  circumference  is  an  ellipse  instead 
of  a  circle.  Its  greatest  eipiatorial  diameter  at  sea-level, 
where  the  vertices  touch  the  surface  in  longitude  1-1  22'  E. 
and  165  37'  W.,  is  nearly  two  miles  longer  than  at  right 
angles  to  it.  How  far  inetpralities  of  earth's  form  may  dis- 
turb the  ecpiilibrium  of  its  surface  waters,  and  attract  them 
by  force  of  gravitation  or  some  other  power  yet  imdemon- 
strated,  is  an  incpiiiy  i)ertiuent  to  this  subjcict. 

Arcs  of  meridians  have  been  measured,  to  determine  with 
great  accuracy  the  actual  length  of  each  separate  degree  of 
latitude  from  the  Ecpiator  to  the  North  Pole.  Tliese  meas- 
urements show  that  the  measureil  length  of  a  degree  in- 
creases with  the  latitude,  and  that  a  degree  at  the  polo, 
where  earth's  surface  is  Hattened  one  IJOOth  jiart  of  its  dia- 
meter, IS  now  3,662  feet,  (0.6!).!  of  a  mile)  longer  than  at  the 
increasing  curvature  of  the  protuberant  Ecpiator.  Earth's 
form  being  now  unsymmetrical,  tends  to  keep  its  surface 
waters  in  a  state  of  unrest.  Many  forces  are  continually  la- 
boring by  different  methods,  to  attain  for  these,  a  state  near- 
er to  equilibrium,  thereby  giving  impulse  to  oceanic  currents. 

Mathew  F.  Maury,  by  an  original  system  of  classification, 
adopted  in  the  U.  S,  wind  and  current  charts,  did  much  to 
attract  a  critical  exploration  of  maritime  currents.  There 
may  be  a  partial  truth  in  all  the  many  theories  advanced. 
The  voyages  of  the  British  ships  Liyhtuhyj,  Pore,  pine  and 
Challenyer,  United  States'  ships  Dolphin,  Tascarora,  Fish 
Hmvk,  and  Swedish  steamer  Viya,  have  given  us  reliable 
data  for  scientific  study;  but  a  carefully  preserved  record  of 


AKCTIC    DIUFT    AND   OCKAN    CUHHENTS. 


i 


the  drift  of  wiiifs  honic  dirolocton  ice-floes  and  along  ocean 
cnrnsnts,  Iiiigely  supjtlcincnts  one  ndd  of  kn(j\vl«'dg(}.  The 
British  discov(>ry  slii|»  /lrs<,hi/r,  one  of  Sir  Edward  Behdier's 
expedition,  was  uhuiidoncd  Aug.  20,  IH'ti,  when  frozen  in,  not 
far  from  Beediy  Island,  in  lat.  74  40'  N.,  Ion.  DO  45'  W., 
and  was  picked  up  without  a  i)erson  onboard  by  Ca|)tain 
I'uddington,  of  the  American  wliah'-ship  (I'lonjc  Ilciir;/,  Sept. 
11th,  18r)5,  in  lat.  (54  40'  N.,  Ion.  01  80'  W.,  off  Cumber- 
land Sound,  on  the  west  coast  of  Batrin's  Hay,  just  south  of 
Davis  Strait.  Slu;  was  brought  to  tlu;  Unitcnl  States,  iindby 
Congress  present(>d  to  England.  In  381  days  she  drifted 
eastward  in  the  ice-floe  fully  1,100  miles,  averaging  about 
three  miles  each  day. 

Another  remarkable  expeiicnct!  of  Arctic  drift  was  that  of 
a  party  of  19  persons,  including  m(m,  women  and  children, 
lauded  on  an  ice-floe  of  fiv(^  miles  in  circumference,  with 
boats,  stores  and  ])rovisions  from  the  U.  S.  S.  Polaris, 
Charles  F.  Hall,  Commander,  on  October  loth,  1872,  in  lat. 
77  35'  N.,  not  far  from  lattleton  Island,  when  it  was  thought 
that  vesscd  was  about  to  siidc.  Upon  this  drifting  floe  they 
built  snow  huts  in  which  ihoy  lived  and  kept  their  records 
and  provisions.  They  were  rescued  by  the  barkentine 
7V//res,s,  Capt.  Bartlett,"  April  30th,  1873,  in  lat.  53  30'  N., 
which  vessel  was  engaged  in  sealing. 

In  the  light  of  information  now  received,  it  appears  quite 
certain  that  had  the  JcdiiiifKc  proved  stron,^  enough  to  hold 
together,  she  would  have  sailed  safely  into  New  York  early 
in  the  Spring  of  1884,  if  not  before.  In  proof  of  this  opin- 
ion, the  following  facts  are  now  reported  as  causing  great 
surprise  and  much  attentive  study  among  scientific  men  in 
the  United  States. 

now   THE    NEWS   WAR   TIEOEIVED. 

On  Friday.  August  15th,  1884,  the  American  bark 
Fluov'iue,  Capt.  Alexander  Wilson,  arrived  at  Philadelphia, 
— days  from  Ovigtut,  the  port  of  shipment  for  the  cryolite 
mines,  situated  a  fcnv  miles  north  of  Julians-haab,  the  prin- 
cipal place  and  seat  of  the  local  government  of  au  extensive 


6 


ARCTIC   DRIFT   ANU   OCEAN   CURRHNT9. 


district  on  tho  sotitliorn  txtremity  of  Grocnland.  I(  id  A 
iimritiinc  station  sitimttMl  llOniilos  N.  W.  of  Cape  FarowftlJ, 
tlio  cxtronic  Sdiitliciii  pdiiit  of  (rn'oiilaiid. 

Just  licforc  Hiiiliii^'  fniiii  h  ij,'tiit,  in  .Inlv,  l8iS4,  iiii  otKcial 
dis]){vt('li,  uddi'csscd  to  tin'  Danisji  Confinlate  in  Now  York, 
was  liandt'd  liini  l»j  the  Diiiiisli  ("oloniai  (lovornor  of  Jn- 
lianH-lmal),  wlio  wont  at  onco  to  lvi},'tnt  and  piv»>  the  nowH  to 
('a|)t.  Wilson,  rpon  the  an'ivai  of  the  FliKtr'nw  at  ^Miila- 
doil)liia,  (!ai)t.  Wilson  pifinipf ly  forwarded  tlic  di«ymt(  li  to 
tJM!  Dunisli  Consul,  wlio  Ivindly  furniHlies  tli<'  following  offi- 
cial translation,  dated 

[official  ('ommimcation  ok  thi:  danism   covbrnment.J 

"The  Colony  Ji'LiANSHAAH,  IN  Sorrii  (iRekniand,  ) 

"Juno  2:kl,  1884.       f 

"  To  the  Ddiils/i  ('o)isiihifr  ill  Xfir   }'(*/•/.•.• 

"I  hor(d)y  take  the  liherty  to  re(|ucst  tho  consnlato  to 
inform  tlH>  editors  of  77/r  Xi  ir  Yoih  Jlcrahf  that  on  the  18th 
iiist.,  three  Oreenlanders  jueked  up  on  an  iee-tloe  some 
eliects,  and  sonit^  j)artl.v  torn  j)aperH  belon^'ing  to  tho  Ameri- 
can Arctic  Jeannetto  exp-dition.  anion^'  which  are  tho  fol- 
lowing: 

"1.  Two  (uid-])ieces  of  a  wooden  l>ox,  on  wdiicli  are 
written  witli  lead  ])encil,  on  one  piece: 


GENERAL  ORDERS. 
TELEGKAMS. 
SAILING  OHDERS. 
DISCIPLINE. 


SHIP  S  PAPERS. 
VAIUOrs  AGItEEMENTS. 
CHARTER  PARTY. 


"The  last  words  not  very  plain.     On  tlio  other  piece  was: 


DEFORE   SAILING. 


"3.     A  torn   check   book.     On    tlio  back  of  one  of  tlio 
checks  is  printed,  'For  deposit  with  tho  l)ank  of  California.' 
"4.     A  pair  of  oilskin  trousers,  marked:  Lours  NoROS. 


ARCTIC    DRIFT   AND  OCKAN   CrRRKNTS.  7 

"  These  rll'ccts,  nuiiil)t'riii<^' Iwciily-oiic  iiicccs  (hcsidcs  tlio, 
papers),  (ire  in  iny  i><)ss('ssi()ti.  I  iim  ;,'oiii;,'  lioiiu!  to  rt'iniiiu 
iluriii;,'  till!  winter.  Should  iiiiyhody  want  further  int'orm- 
iition,  tlu)  siiine  vnu  ]h\  obtiiiu  h\  iiddressin;^ 

"  KoI-ONflllSTVItKU  ('.  JiYTZKN, 

'■  Kon^d.  (Ironl,  ll.uidels-Kontor, 

"  KjohiiihfiN II,  K., 

"  ik'iiniaj'k. 
"lit'speetfully.  ('\i;l,  Lvt/kn. 

\\  hell  ('apt.  Wilsoii!",  report  of  tiu!  hanpie  Fhioniic  was 
briefly  tele^. .i;  '"•'A  over  tlie  coiiutry.  a  tew  wtsnj  at  fir>-f" 
iiudined  to  doubt  tlie  truth  of  tlie  report,  but  wlien  tuber 
jtarticuhirs  wvic  received,  with  tlie  uuipialilied  otru-ial  <ui- 
<b>rseineiit  of  the  (Joveruor  of  Jiiliaiis-liaab  to  tlie  J)anisli 
Consul  at  New  York,  and  it  was  hsiiiied  that  the  artieles 
recovered  would  soon  follow,  tlu;  information  thus  became 
authoritatively  vouched  for.  and  is  now  attractiny  that  deep 
interest  it  so  thorouj^'idy  merits. 

STATKMKNT   OK    CAl'TMN    WII.So.N, 

Capt.  Alexander  Wilson,  who  now  resides  at  his  homo, 
No.  li():}t  South  Fifth  street,  l'hiladel|ihi.i.  kindly  furnishes 
lis  the  following  statement.  He  says:  The  superintendent 
of  the  Kryolite  mines  at  Ivigtut  first  informed  him  of  this 
liighly  iniiiorlant  discovery.  \  party  of  I'isipiimauv  were 
out  among  the  tloe  ice,  catcdiing  seal.  Late  in  the  afternoon 
of  Wednesday,  June  18th,  bSSl,  they  approached  a  piece 
whicdi  had  attracted  their  attention,  floating  in  latitude  (if) 
;}<i'  north,  longitude  Hi  7'  west,  where  llioy  found  on 
a  largo  ])ieco  of  drift  ice,  the  lower  i)art  of  a  tent,  the  uppei' 
l.art  of  whitdi  had  been  blown  away  by  tl-^  storms  of  three 
Arctic  winters;  also  the  ends  of  a  provision  cask,  and  some 
.stores  marked  ".//a/o/c//'"— a  charter  party  "  betweej  S.  13. 
Peterson,  managing  owner  of  the  American  schooner  Ihimi/ 
A.  Uijilv,  Capt.  J.  W.  Jesporson,  of  .San  Francisco,  Cjilifornia, 
and  Creorgo  W.  DeLong,  from  Mare  Ishmd  Navy  Yard,  to 
the  port  of  St  .^richaels  in  Norton  Sound,  Ti'rritory  of 
Alaska,  IT.  S.  A.,  there  for  delivery  to  the  Arctic  steamer 


8 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND   OCEAN   CURRENTS. 


JeanneiU'" — also  a  partially  used  check  book  on  the  Bank  of 
California,  with  a  package  of  cancelkHl  checks,  signed  by 
Captain  DeLong — a  pair  of  oilskin  trousers  marked  "Louis 
Noros,"and  a  bear  skin,  covering  something  of  the  size  and 
shape  of  a  human  corpse,  Avhioh  the  Greenlanders  did  not  re- 
move to  ascertain  what  was  under  it,  owing  to  a  jiative 
superstition  rendering  those  temporarily  unclean  who  handlo 
the  dead  bodies  of  human  beings. 

On  another  piece  of  Hoe  near  by,  quite  a  quantity  of  sailor's 
clothing  was  found.  These  relics  the  Escpiimaux  took  to 
the  Governor  of  Julians-haab,  who  immediately  started, 
taking  one  of  their  number  as  a  guide,  to  tind  the  ice-floe 
and  the  supposed  l)ody;  but  after  long  search  he  was  com- 
l)elled  to  return  without  success,  it  having  floated  oft'. 

We  ougiit  to  know  all  about  these  relics  in  a  short  time. 
There  are  four  American  vessels  at  tlie  little  village  of  Ivigtut 
at  present,  loading  with  cryolite  from  the  mines  near  that 
place,  and  some  of  them  will  follow  the  Fluorine  very  soon. 
Capt.  Wilson  says  he  believes  that  Governer  Lytzen  will 
send  all  the  things  found  on  the  floe  to  Ivigtnt,  in  order 
to  get  them  to  this  country  as  soon  as  jiossible.  Ho  wrote  to 
the  superintendent  of  the  cryolite  mines  to  send  them  to  the 
United  States  on  the  first  vessel  which  leaves. 

"  JEANNETTE  "  RELIC'S  ACTUALLY  LEI'T  OX  THE  ICE. 

On  Friday,  September  5th,  1879,  the  Jeani\eUeenierei\  the 
ice  pack,  and  became  fixed  in  the  flo(\  drifting  northwardly 
past  Herald  Island,  until  she  reached  about  latitude  73  50' 
north,  longitude  180  .  Then  the  drift  turned  into  a  more 
northwesterly  course,  and  kept  on  in  that  direction  until  at 
4  A.  M.,  Monday,  June  13th,  1881,  the  vessel  sunk  in  38 
fathoms  of  water  in  longitude  151"  58'  45"  E.,  latitude  77^ 
14'  57"  N. 

The  Jeamutte  drifted  steadily  westward  up  to  the  time  she 
sank,  und  the  ice-floe  on  which  these  relics  were  found  may 
have  been  one  of  those  upon  which  her  party  took  refuge 
just  before  she  sunk.  It  is  but  natural  to  supi)ose  that  the 
floe  kept  on  drifting  westward,  just  as  the  Jeanndle  had  been 


d 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND   OCEAN    CURRENTS,  9 

doing.  Her  course,  while  wedged  in  the  ice,  is  a  true  j)roof 
of  a  westerly  current  along  this  unexplored  and  shallow 
portion  of  the  Arctic  Ocean  north  of  Siberia. 

In  Mrs.  Emma  DeLong's  admirable  publication  of  her 
brave  husband's  ship  and  ice  journal  (see  Vol.  II,  page  578) 
a  list  of  170  ])ieces  of  clothing  is  given  in  detail,  consisting 
of  over-shirts,  drawers,  coats,  trousers,  fur  and  woolen 
blankets,  skin-parkies,  etc.,  whic'i  remaiiuul  on  hand  after 
the  ])arty,  then  on  an  ice  cake,  were  clothed,  and  their  knap- 
sacks packed  with  the  regulation  outfit  for  their  journey 
southward.  These,  he  says,  "were  divided  among  all  hands 
as  recjuired,  much  of  it  being  in  excess." 

Besides  lanijing  their  boats,  sledges,  equipment  of  riHes 
and  plenty  of  ammunition,  sir  tents,  })rovisions,  including 
3,500  ])ounds  pemmican  in  45-pound  tin  canisters,  1,500 
j)ounds  hard  bread,  canned  meats,  Liebig's  extract,  alcohol, 
tea,  sugar,  and  all  available  ecpiipments  necessary  for  a  re- 
treat were  securely  ]da('ed  on  an  ice-floe,  distant  400  feet 
from  where  the  JaniHefle  went  down. 

Tlie  floe  bearing  the  e/e(/«/*e//('  relics  was  found  off  Julian-' 
shaab,  the  first  Danish  settlement  on  the  coast,  just  below 
Ivigtut,  on  Wednesday,  June  18th,  1884,  just  three  years,  oi* 
1,07()  days  after  Ca]>t.  DeLong  and  his  gallant  band  broke 
camp  on  an  ice-hoe  in  Lat.  77  18'  N.,  Long.  153^' 25',  E. 
and  started  southward  on  Saturday,  June  18th,  1881,  hop- 
ing, as  DeLong  then  wrote  in  his  journal — "with  God's 
blessing  to  reach  the  New  Siberian  Islands,  and  from  there, 
mak(!  our  wk}  by  boats  to  the  coast  of  Siberia." 

EXPl.ANATtO.V    UY    ONE   OI'   THE    "  JEANNKTIE's  "    CHEW. 

{Tnder  date  of  Newburyport,  August  20th,  1884,  LouIh 
Philipi)e  Noros,  one  of  the  survivors  who  rea'lied  Siberia 
with  De  Long's  ]>arty  in  the  first  cutter,  writes: — 

"  Before  we  left  the  Jainniik  we  carried  on  tc  the  ice  a 
lot  of  bear  skins,  which  we  spread  out  to  form  a  iloor,  and 
in  addition  cai'ried  clothing,  food,  rifles,  tobacco,  etc.  After 
the  Jeaniicfic  was  cruidied  wn  had  to  leave  the  bear  skins,  a 
lot  of  canned  goods,   cans,  rifles,   and  200  or  800  pounds  of 


10 


Al.CTIC    DRIFT    AiND   OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


tobacco  behind,  as  we  could  not  carvv  theiu  all  over  the  ice. 
We  also  left  all  the  clothing  except  what  we  had  on,  and  a 
suit  of  nndei-clothing,  which  we  packed  and  carried  in  a 
knapsack.  We  carried  //i"  tents  with  us,  Do  Long's  pai'tj 
having  two,  Melville's  two,  and  Cliipi)  s  one.  I  may  possi- 
bly have  left  my  sealskin  ])antaloons  on  the  ice  where 
the  JcdinuHv  went  down,  but  my  impression  is  that  they 
were  left  with  other  clothing,  shi])'s  im])lements,  utensils, 
I)apers,  etc.,  in  the  cache  left  l»y  De  Long  on  the  Siberian 
coast.  AVe  had  four  tin  boxes,  in  which  De  Long  kept  the 
shi])'s  log  and  valuable  ])apors,  two  of  which  were  left  in  the 
cache  and  two  carried  auay  by  De  Long  when  (Quartermaster 
Nindermann  and  I  started  south  for  liel)).  We  also  left  in 
the  cache  a  small  l)eai'  skin,  tlie  oidy  l)ear  skin  in  the  pos- 
session of  th(>  party  after  heaving  the  JciDuirUc.  The  ac- 
count says  that  a  cask  of  misct-llaneous  ship  provisions  Avas 
found  marked  Jcdintcffe.  Now  the  fact  is,  we  did  take  some 
bread  harrels  out,  but  after  ])utting  the  bread  in  bags  and 
loading  it  on  our  sleds  we  left  the  empty  barrels  btdiind  on 
the  ice." 

A  native  (lreeiilander"s  language  may  be  deticient  in  words 
capable  of  such  nice  distinctions  as  the  exact  ditlerenee  be- 
tween our  English  us(>  of  the  words  cask  and  barrel.  A  large 
ban'(d  may  frequently,  for  purposes  of  general  description, 
be  called  a  cask.     Noros  further  savs: — 

"  A\  ha;  ]»nz/desme  most  is  how  these  articles  now  reported 
found  could  liave  remaine(l  on  the  ice  so  long.  My  ex})e- 
rience  taught  me  that  all  small  articles  placed  on  the  ice  in 
the  arctic  nsgions  always  attracted  the  sun  and  gradually 
melted  down  through  the  ice  until  lost  to  sight.  Why,  in  a 
very  short  time  a  clii])  would  be  buried  its  own  thickness 
under  the  ice  by  this  peculiar  process,  and  if  the  things 
found  really  belonged  to  the  Jritinictfc  something  strangely 
wonderful  seems  to  have  i)rovidentially  kept  tluun  so  long  a 
time  on  the  surface  of  the  ice." 

WHAT    OK  [.OXO'S   DIARY    EXMM.AINS. 

Some  explanation  of  the  above  nniy  possibly  be  found  in 
Capt.  De  Long's  carefully  written  and  minutely  accurate 


ARCTIC    DRII.-T    AND    OCEAN    CURRENTS.  1  1 

diary  (Vol.  11,  pages  5SS  ct.  seq.)  where  is  inserted  tlie  copy 
of  a  digested  synopsis  of  the  cruise  of  i\ie, feanndte,  up  to  her 
^  foundering,  dated  on  the  ice-floe,  Friday,  June  17th,   1881, 

and  signed  by  him  officially.     TJiis,  it  is  recorded,  he  pre- 
pared and  sewed  with  great  care  in  a  piece  of  black  rubber, 
rendering   it  as   impervious  to  moisture   as   possible,    and 
caused  the  whole  to  be  headed  up,  inside  of  an  empty  water- 
breaker,  or  small  cask  used  for  carrying   Avater   in   boats. 
When  thus  securely  packed,  he  left  it  witli  the  debris  of 
their  first  camp  on  the  ice-floe  to  which  they  escaped  when 
their  vessel  sunk.     Capt.  De  Long  must  have  observed  the 
tendency  of  small  articles  to  work  their  way  into  the  ice, 
and  it  seems  more  than  likely,  that  in  accordance  with  the 
especial  care  otiierwise  manifest  in  regard  to  this  precious 
record,  that  he  had  it  covered  over  before  his  departure, 
with  some  of  the  clothing,   bear  skins  and  otljci-  material, 
which  Noros  states  was  loft  behind  on  the  ice-floe.     If  cov- 
ering a  large  surface  of  ice  with  a  thick  coveriny  would  ]n-o- 
tect  it,  what  course  seems  more  natui-al  for  a  careful  and 
scientific  commander  to  pursue.     This  may  account  for  its 
-*^.  i)reservation  for  so  long  a  period,  in  good  condition. 

The  men  first  camjied  in  nlr  tents,  on  the  ice-floe,  which 
DeLong  describes  (Vol.  II,  ])age  o82)  as  follows:  Tent  "A., 
Headipiarters;  J3.,  De  Long;  C,  Ohipp;  1).,  Melville;  e' 
Danenhower;  F.,  Ambler;"  in  front  of  which  were  placed 
three  boats  and  foui-  sledges.  Accepting  the  statement  now 
made  by  Noros,  '-that  the  party  carried  south  five  tents,  De 
Long's  ]).irty  having  two,  Melville's  two,  and  Chii)i)'s  one," 
it  is  apparent  that,  as  De  Long  records,  ,s/,r  as  landed  on  the 
ice-floe,  one  must  have  been  left  there  when  tlie  retreat 
began. 

This  accounts  for  the  partly  destroyed  tent  which  Captain 
Wilson  says  was  found  on  the  floe.  He  reported  that  the 
uativ'.s  .saw  a  bearskin  covering  something  resembling  in 
size  and  shape  a  human  corpse.  This  probablv  covered 
some  provisions  which  could  not  be  carried  and  were  aban- 
doned on  the  ice,  and  he  fully  "believes  that  what  Avas  cov- 
ered up  under  the  bear  skin,  was  only  apparently  in  the 


12 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND    OCEAN    CURHRNTS. 


1 


shape  of  a  human  l)()dy."  May  it  not  have  been  a  long  wa- 
ter-breaker? Chief  t^ni>ineer  Montgomery  Fletcher,  U.S. 
N.,  informs  us  that  many  of  such  a  form  were  included  in  the 
outfit  of  the  Jeanndd'  when  she  left  the  U.  S.  Navy  Yard  at 
Mare  Island,  Cal. 

FOUCE    AND    DIIIECTION    OF   crnHENTS. 

Captain  AVilson  states  that  he  "thoroughly  believes  that 
the  articles  on  the  piece  of  ice  found  oft'  the  coast  of 
Greeidand  really  floated  there — borne  by  the  iden- 
tical cake  of  field  ice  upon  which  the  JcanHcUv  party 
encamped  after  the  sinking  of  their  vessel,  and  upon  which 
they  apportioned  their  outfit,  and  abandoned  all  that  was 
unnecessary  to  sustain  life,"'  taking  what  they  could,  and 
leaving  the  remainder,  before  starting  southward  upon  their 
retreat.  Capt.  Wilson  has  been  on  Avhuling  ships  cruising 
in  Arctic  seas  for  more  than  thirteen  years.  H(^  says  there  is 
nothing  improbabU'  in  this,  as  he  knows  from  frequent 
experience  that  "there  is  a  polar  current  found  as  high  as 
eighty  degrees  North,  which  runs  in  a  south\v(;st  direction 
closely  along  the  coast  of  (xreenland,  tlien  turns  at  Cape 
Farewell  and  flows  thence  northeasterly  along  the  western 
coast  of  Greenland  uj)  Baffin's  Bay." 

Capt.  Charles  B.  Dix,  one  of  the  owners  of  the  Fluorine 
fully  agrees  with  Cti\)t.  Wilson  that  these  relics  could  not 
possibly  have  drifted  eastward,  down  through  the  intricate 
series  of  eliannels  leading  into  Baffin's  Bay,  and  thence 
across  Davis  Straits,  to  the  point  near  the  coast  of  South 
Greenland  where  they  wore  found.  Such  a  circuitous  route, 
through  McClure's  Strait,  south  of  Parry  Islands,  and  thence 
eastward  through  Lancaster  or  Jones'  Sound  into  Baffin's 
Bay,  involves  a  com[)licated  drift  of  over  five  thousand  miles, 
over  17  degrees  of  latitude  and  149  d(!grees  of  longitude. 

Capt.  Wilson  further  says:  "The  ice  would  thus  be 
taken  between  Nova  Zembla  and  Franz  Josef  Land,  where 
a  strong  we^'.^rly  current  sets  against  Sjjitzbergen,  and 
thence  southerly  around  Spitzlxirgen,  Avhere  an  indraught 
of  the  Gulf  Stream  gives  a  northern  direction  to  the  current. 
This  northern  course  continues  to  nearly  latitude  80  ,  longi- 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND   OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


n 


tiule  10^  east,  where  it  meets  the  southward  current  pouring 
from  the  Polar  Ocean  and  is  carried  down  the  east  coast  of 
Greenland.  Of  the  portion  of  the  journey  which  the  ice-floe 
probably  took  I  can  speak  from  my  own  knowledge,  as  I 
have  sailed  along  there  myself,  and  the  ice  is  carried  south- 
ward on  the  current  parallel  with  the  Greenland  coast  at  the 
i;ato  of  about  twenty-five  miles  a  day.  When  the  ice  got  to 
Cape  Farewell  it  was,  very  likely,  carried  around  that  corner 
of  Greenland  by  Gulf  Stream  influence,  and  floated  to  the  very 
spot  where  it  was  found.  In  performing  this  journey  the 
relics  bf  the  Jeaundle  went  over  forty-five  hundred  miles 
in  one  thousand  and  ninety-six  days;  allowing  for  all  the 
twists  and  eccentricities  which  the  currents  may  be  subject 
to.  This  would  give  the  floes  an  average  traveling  time  of 
about  four  nautical  miles  a  day,  which  is  just  what  took 
place. 

OPINIONS    EXPRESSED    DY    DISTIXGUISIIED   MEN. 

Dr.  Emil   Bessels,  the   Arctic   explorer  and  well   known 
geologist  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  at  Washington,  was 
at  first  in  doubt  in  regard  to  the  brief  telegra})hic  report, 
but  upon  receipt  of  fuller  details  he  gave  as  his  opinion  that 
to  reach  that  point,  the  floe  on  which  they  were  found  must 
liave  drifted  along  the  northerly  part  of  the  known  coast  of 
Greenland,  and  have  been  carried  by  the  East  Greenland 
ice  stream,  which  doubles  Cape  Farewell,  around  that  capo 
into  .'      vicinity  of  Julianshaab.     The  currents  in  Baffin's 
Bay  and  Davis  Straits  are  such  that  the  cold  current  which 
doubles  Caiie  Farewell  runs  to  the  northward  on  the  inside 
of  a  branch  of  the  Gulf  Stream  drift,  which  jn-obably  does 
not  extend  further   north  than  Disco.     He  says  most  em- 
phatically that  "the  floe  vould  not  have  come  doion  Baffin's 
Baij  to  where   it  was  found,  as  the  currents   issuing  from 
Smith  Sound,  Jones  Sound   and  Lancaster  Sound,  closely 
follow  the  eastern  shores  of  the  North  American  Archipel- 
ago, bending— as  all  southward  currents  do— to   the  west- 
ward.    Whatever  channels  the  ice  floe  had  come  through 
it  would  necessarily  have  followed   the  course  of  currents 
along  its  route." 


14 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND    OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


Cliiuf-Engiuoor  Melville,  one  of  tlio  Kurvivors  of  the  Jeait- 
veffe  cx]U'(litloii,  after  iiiialv/ing  all  data  obtainable  from  the 
IT.  S.  Hvdrographic  OtHce  Ke])orts,  with  a  careful  Hcrutiny 
and  comparison  of  arrows,  indicating  the  currents  observed 
by  various  navigators  and  distinguished  geographers,  and 
being  perscuially  familiar  with  the  Ar.-tic  literature  in  gen- 
eral, and  the  drift  of  the  Jvdiniclfv  up  to  her  loss,  has  ex- 
pressed h'-.  carefully  determined  belief  than  the  drift  from 
where  they  left  the  vessel  would  eventually  have  taken  lier 
safely  out  had  she  remained  staunch  and  intact,  proceeding 
south-easterly  past  the  southern  end  of  Franz  Josef  Land, 
thence  moving  at  a  ver}-  rapid  rate  when  the  pack  im])inged 
upon  that  group  of  land,  and  continuing  on  in  the  current, 
passing  south  of  Spitzbergen,  around  Bear  Island  into  At- 
lantic waters. 

Ho  says  before  the  Jen»)icffc  sunk,  they  all  ftdt  sure  their 
vessel  would  continue  to  drift  northwest  during  tlu;  coming 
year,  they  having  then  got  out  of  tiiat  r(;giou  of  Arctic  dold- 
rums, as  far  as  drift  is  concerned,  which  whirls  ice  around 
iu  circles,  in  a  locality  just  north  of  AVrangel  island.  The 
Arctic  seems  to  be  a  very  shallow  ocean,  largely  studded 
with  an  island  archipcjiago,  and  on  the  Pacific  side  many 
indications  ])oint  to  the  ])ossible  existence  of  a  small  Arctic 
continent  surrounding  the  physical  pole.  The  greatest  depth 
encountered  by  the  Jeauuetfv  during  her  first  year's  drift  was 
not  over  sixty,  and  the  least  seventeen  fathoms.  The  bottom 
from  which  was  taken  many  meteoric  si)ecimens,  was  gener- 
ally' uniform,  averaging  about  thii'ty  fathoms  only.  The 
Jefniiicfic  had  already  drifted  UK^re  than  half  way  to  the  lon- 
gitude of  the  river  Yenisei,  a  \nn\\i  on  the  northern  coast  of 
Asia  visited  b}-  steamers  from  Hammerfest  in  Norway,  be- 
longing to  Alexander  SSiberiakolf,  an  enterprising  llussiau 
merchant,  who  tvttdes  there  f(jr  wheat  and  other  local  prod- 


uct.^ 


Professor  George  Davidson,  President  of  this  Academy, 
who,  as  Assistant  in  charge  of  the  Bureau  of  the  U.  S.  Coast 
and  Geodetic  Survey  in  this  city,  and  author  of  the  Alaska 
Coast  Pilot  published  by  the  LI.  S.  Government,   has  devo- 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND   OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


16 


ted  years  of  patient  toil  to  the  eonsideration  of  Arctic  and 
kindred  currents  of  the  Nortli  Pacific  and  Atlantic  Oceans, 
IS  as  well  qualified  to  express  an  opinion  on  such  matters 
as  any  one  on  our  Coast.     He  says:     It  would  seem  highly 
probable  that  the  i^reservation  of  these  De  Long  relics  may 
have  been  effected  in  this  wise.  After  the  party  left  the  floe  in 
boats,  all  relics  that  remained  may  have  been  covered  with 
a  blanket  of  snow,  and  thus  preserved  from  immediate  shift- 
ing or  loss.     This,  with  subse(iuent  snows  and  rains,  would 
form  a  nvv!-.  or  snowv  body  of  ice,  overlying  them,  which 
may  have  thus  remained,  not  only  all  the  next  summer,  but 
have  been  added  to  the  following  winter,  more  especially  if 
the  floe  followed  a  track  in  the  general  direction  of  the  pole, 
keeping  thereby  in  a  region  of  intense  cold.     This  method 
of  preservation,   must  have  been  repeated,    until   the   floe 
passed  into  currents  bearing  it  southward;  where,  encount- 
ering a  warmer  temperature,  the  protective  covering  of  ice 
or  n!-v(-  would  melt  away  three  years'  deposits,  and  just  at 
such  an  opportune  period,  the  party  of  Greenlanders  ap- 
peared to  witness  these  relics,  and  rescue  all  but  the  water- 
breaker,   or  other  stores  under  the  bear-skin  and  partially 
destroyed  tent. 

Nordenskiiild,  the  first  circumnavigator  of  the  continents 
of  Europe  and  Asia,  by  this  northwestern  passage  along  the 
Arctic  circle,  has  given  us  largo  additions  to  our  knowledge 
of  Arctic  phenomena.  He  says,  "In  geology  a  knowledge 
of  Arctic  lands  is  an  indispensable  condition  in  determining 
the  former  history  of  our  globe."  So  in  physical  science,  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  Arctic  currents  is  needed  as  a  key  to 
unlock  many  an  important  question,  now  clouded  with  un- 
certainty. 

Alfred  Ilussel  Wallace,  in  his  work,  Island  Life,  says  it  is 
highly  desirable  to  estimate  the  amount  of  heat  stored  up  in 
currents  of  warm  water,  which  proceed  from  the  tropics  to 
north  polar  basins  by  many  large  streams  and  rivers;  and  by 
a  continual  process  of  gradual  equalization,  under  a  dry 
non-conductor  of  ice,  these  operate  io  a  certain  extent  in 
ameliorating  the  rigors  of  an  Arctic  winter. 


16 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND    OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


Mr.  Clement  E.  Murkliiim,  the  (listinguishetl  Secretary  of 
the  British  Royal  Geogriiphical  Society,  aft(>r  comiaeuting 
on  the  unfortunate  misatlveuture  and  valuable  results  of  the 
Greely  expedition,  expresses  his  firm  belief  that  "  Polar  re- 
search will  now  continue  more  vigorously  and  wisely  until 
this  much  needed  scientific  work  has  been  com])leted." 

POLAR   EXPEDITIONS   CONTEMPLATED    AND   UNDER   WAY. 

The  Danisli  government  expedition  un(h'r  Lieut.  Jensen, 
of  the  Royal  Navy,  left  in  May  to  explore  the  west  coast  of 
Greenland,  and  is  exjiected  to  return  to  Coi)enhagen  in  Octo- 
ber. A  similar  expedition  under  Lieut.  Holm,  is  about 
proceeding  northward  along  the  east  coast  of  Greeidand,  and 
a  third  botanical  and  zoological  expedition,  under  Prof. 
Warming,  has  left  Denmark  for  West  Greenland. 

Through  these  channels  we  may  receive  additional  infor- 
mation from  the  De  Long  records,  left  afloat  in  the  direlect 
water-breaker. 

Another  Danish  Polar  Expedition  will  start  from  Copen- 
hagen for  the  frozen  Northwest  next  summer,  proceeding  by 
the  way  of  Franz  Josef  Laud.  It  will  be  under  the  leader- 
ship of  Lieut.  Andreas  Hovgaard,  R.  X.  of  reja  Expedition 
conjointly  with  Gamel. 

Russia  is  also  organizing  a  Polar  Expedition.  From  St. 
Petersburg,  under  date  of  August  27th,  1884,  we  hear  that 
the  ministry  of  marine  has  issued  to  several  learned  soci- 
eties a  plan  for  a  Russian  Polar  Expedition.  The  idea  is  to 
have  several  large  parties  start  from  Jeannette  Island  and 
proceed  entirely  on  foot  across  the  ice,  leaving  large  depots 
of  provisions  in  their  rear.  It  is  thought  there  are  many 
islands  north  of  Jeannette  Island  that  could  be  utilized. 

Lignite,  suitable  for  fuel,  is  there  found  cropping  out  at 
the  surface  in  large  (pnuitities,  also  oftering  facilities  for 
manufacturing  gas  necessary  for  use  in  captive  balloons. 
This  is  much  needed  for  observations  to  determine  Avliat 
route  to  take,  and  for  a  general  topographical  reconnois- 
ance. 

Xordenskiold  is  contemplating  an  expedition  to  explore 
the  Antarctic  continent. 


1 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND    OCEAN   CURRENTS. 


17 


X 


The  object  of  the  Greeley  expedition  was  to  estnl)lisli 
one  of  tlio  thirteen  Polar  stations,  sngK^'stecI  by  Lieutenant 
Weyprecht,  of  Austria,  who  ilisL-ovored  Franz  Josef  Land. 
Simultaneous  observations  of  all  ])hysical  phenomena  were 
taken.  The  complete  programme  was  arranged  by  an  inter- 
national Polar  congress,  in  which  rei-resentatives  of  thirteen 
nations  took  ])art.  Observation  in  which  the  greatest  possi- 
ble accuracy  was  to  be  had  were  those  of  declination  and  de- 
viation of  the  magnetic  needle,  height  of  barometer,  temper- 
ature of  the  air  and  sea,  mean  and  maximum  rise  and  fall  of 
tides,  the  drift  of  ice-floes  and  the  direction  of  currents. 
All  geographical  and  other  explorations  were  incidental  to 
the  main  objects  of  the  expedition. 

SOME   RESULTS   AND    SUGGESTIONS. 

Arctic  research,  which  has  advanced  about  three  hundred 
miles  northward  since  Baffin  immortalized  himself  in  the 
year  WU\,  will  now  be  more  carefully  and  skilfully  under- 
taken, by  the  practical  application  of  wisdom  gained  through 
ex})orience. 

From  a  scientific  standpoint  the  Amcrio.n  Expedition  at 
Lady  Franklin  Bay  in  hit.  81  40'  North,  has  accomplished 
noteworthy  residts.  One  of  its  geograi)hical  successes  "is 
the  attainment  of  a  higher  latitude  than  tliut  reached  by  Capt. 
Markham  in  the  British  expedition  of  1875-  ().  This  feat 
was  achieved  by  Lieut.  Ltjckwood  and  Sergeant  Brainard 
on  May  13th,  1.S82,  who  reached  an  island  oil"  the  coast  of 
Greenland  in  lat.  83^  25'  N.,  long.  44  05'  West,  from  the 
summit  of  which,  Avhen  2,000  feet  high,  they  saw  no  land  to 
the  northward,  but  at  the  northeast  a  cape,  which  they 
named  Kobert  Lincoln,  in  lat.  83  35'  N.,  long.  38  32'  W. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  Captain  Markham 's  farthest  was 
83  20'  20"  North,  and  about  20  degrees  of  longitude  west 
of  Lieut.  Lockwood's  farthest  i)oint. 

Greeley  makes  the  suggestive  announcement,  that  at  Lady 
Franklin^Bay  Lat.  81  40'  N.,  Long.  04  30'  W.,  the  tides 
rise  and  fall  8  feet,  and  come  from  the  north.  They  average 
29'  above  zero   Faht.,  which  is  two  degrees  warmer  than 


MM 


18 


ARCTIC    DRIFT    AND    OCEAN    CURRENTS. 


those  at   Melville  Bay  and  Cajx'  Sabine,  where  the   tides 
come  from  the  south. 

Lockwood  foniul  at  S!}  25'  N.,  ahout  the  same  vej^'eta- 
tioii  as  at  Lady  Fraiikliu  JJay,  mikI  is  courtdent  that  with  a 
sulHi-iciit  sui)i)iy  of  provisions  they  could  have  reached  Lat. 

85-  North. 

All  the  omeial  records  of  the  Clreely  Arctic  expedition, 
including'  the  sled,i>e  party  under  Li((ut.  Lockwood,  as  well 
as  the  private  journals  oi'  the  entire  party,  arc  now  in  the 
hands  of  Lieut.  V.  H.  liay,  lately  in  cliar-.3  of  tlu^  U.  S. 
Meteorolo^ieal  Signal  Station,  Point  Barrow,  Alaska.  Ho 
will  compile  a  detailed  history  of  the  (ixpedition,  which,  it 
is  exi)ected,  may  l)e  ready  for  publication  soon  after  ad- 
journment of  the  next  Congress. 

Ju  conclusion  allow  me  to  suggest  a  new  and  automatic 
metlKHl  of  ascertaining  the  drift  of  Arctic  currents,  without 
auv  undue  exposure  of  human  life.  Could  not  an  hundred 
or  more  projjcrly  constructed  casks,  capable;  of  withstanding 
any  probable  ice  pressure,  l.)e  branded  with  the  date  and  po- 
sition in  which  they  may  be  set  adrift,  coupled  with  a  re- 
(piest  to  have  all  i)artieulars  of  their  discovery  sent  immedi- 
ately to  Washington? 

CHARLES  WOLCOTT  BROOKS. 


( 


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"^'"^'^B.r.l....BV^^^'''' 


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